The team of spartan IIIs continue their push as they advance into the Covenant facility. As they advance, they notice three grunt minors and two jackals with shield gauntlets and plasma pistols. Jacob fires his assault rifle and shreds the grunts. Magazines fly out of his gun as their bodies drop.
Thomas extends his DMR and shoots a jackal in its stomach. The other jackal extends its shield to block and fires three shots at Blanks. The spartan sprints toward it and jumps runs against the wall as he evades the shots before he flips behind the jackal.
The Covenant enforcer turns around but leaves its back vulnerable and is shot from behind by Akers. Two Sangheili minors with plasma rifles charge at Jacob so the spartan III turns around and runs away from them. Sangheili minor: "Haha!! He's running!!"
As Jacob catches up with his comrades, Akers and Reid activate their cloaks to avoid detection from the elites. The minors close in on Jacob and the elite on the left fires two plasma bolts at him. The spartan kicks up a jackal wrist gauntlet and activates it; Jacob promptly uses the shield to block the incoming plasma bolts.
The elite looks in shock and Jacob comments, "My turn!" The super soldier bounces a frag grenade against the ground which rises and explodes in the minor's face. The warrior's shields burst, and he stumbles two feet back before he twirls around.
The elite feels dizzy as a massive headache hits him. Jacob suppresses fire with his AR and the eight-foot-tall alien makes the ground shake as he falls. Jacob taunts, "Come on! You want some too!"
Sangheili Warrior: "You'll pay for that demon!!" The elite sprints at the spartan and shoots six heavy plasma shots at Jacob. The spartan blocks each blast but can feel the force of them and his blue shield begins to turn violet as it nearly overrates from the strong impact.
Jacob wonders, "What are you guys waiting for? Testing me again? Screw it!" Jacob sprints and with his shield held high before he pounds the elite with a jumping right kick. The kick knocks the elite down and buzzes his shields which are not as effective against direct physical force.
Akers appears before he unloads a payload of BR shots into the elite. Jacob: "Ah, there you are. Just in time to steal my hard-earned kill."
Akers: "You call that hard earned? Wait until we find an ultra." As the spartans talk, Uron continues to work with Dezarto when a Sangheili minor rushes into the room.
Uron looks, "Warrior, what is it?"
Sangheili minor: "Sir, our forces have noticed several demons have infiltrated this holy ground. They are most likely coming for your location."
Uron: "Ah, the demons are here. I knew they would come. Maintain a tight perimeter around this room. Dezarto, can you speed up the process?"
Dezarto hisses, "Ahhhhh, I t-tthink I cccaaaaannn. Hahaha! Just a moment." Dezarto continues to shuffle several controls located under a metal conduit and accidentally shocks himself. Dezarto yelps, "Yah!"
Uron shakes his head, but the room suddenly is illuminated by various green lights. Dezarto: "Beginning to doubt me missionary? I may be unorthodox, but I have my ways."
Uron: "I see, so how much longer will the process take?"
Dezarto: "I'm not exactly sure, but I think I can get it going in the next twenty minutes."
Uron steps directly behind Dezarto to intimidate him, "Make it fifteen."
Dezarto grunts, "Ahhh, fine!" Elsewhere, two grunt minors and one ultra grunt stand guard with plasma pistols. A Sangheili minor stands behind them with a needler. Captain Akers immediately opens fire and shots down the ultra grunt and a minor.
The other grunt pants before Blanks unloads a barrage of bullets into his body. Elite minor: "Nooo!!" The minor fires three plasma balls at the spartan Jacob rolls right and disappears with his camouflage. Jared shoots three battle rifle blasts into the elite's shields.
The Sangheili fires three violet needle rounds back at the elite trooper. The spartan dives behind a crate to avoid being hit. The elite minor pulls out a small blue plasma grenade and activates it. The grenade turns light blue, and the warrior hurls it beside the crate.
Akers leaps backward as the ensuing explosion knocks the crate sideways. A storm of bullets from Jacob and Thomas hit the elite, bursting its shields. The warrior bends down in pain before Jacob fires an additional three bullets through its skull, "Ouu!!"
Thomas helps Jared back to his feet, "You know we'll always be there to pull you back up, as long as we're breathing."
The captain but a loud sonic boom is heard as well as a strong vibration throughout the facility. Jacob: "What's happening?"
Akers: "They've started the conduit! Quickly, we have to shut it down!!" The officer signals for them to continue and the team runs to a nearby door, but it automatically opens revealing two Mgalekgolo. These creatures are heavy armored infantry. They both stand at around 12 feet tall.
Rather than a simple organism, they are made of hundreds of Lekgolo worms. These worms can think with one hive mind and are orange in color. The mammoth creatures have thick armor, and both weigh around 10,000 pounds.
Despite their formidable appearance, they have a weak spot on their backs that is not protected by armor. This spot gives the worms room to breathe. Jacob cries, "Hunters!"
The hunter on the right has blue armor plus a long fuel rod beam emitter at the end of its left arm. The hunter on the left, has dark bronze armor and a charge-up fuel rod cannon attached to its right arm. Akers: "You know the drill, lure them in! Thomas, camo on! We'll distract them."
Thomas fades from visibility. Jacob shoots eight bullets into the bronze hunter. The creature groans and charges up its fuel rod cannon. Blanks taunts, "Just do it!" The hunter shoots an explosive green rod at the trooper's feet. Jacob jumps over the explosion and lands just four feet ahead of the Mgalekgolo.
The armored animal rages and runs before it lunges at him with a diagonal strike. Jacob rolls right and forward as the creature slams a dent in the floor. The hunter swings horizontally but Jacob flips behind it before he turns and fires a stream of bullets that split the hunter in half. Orange ooze flows as worms are splattered by the shot.
Jacob proceeds to shoot several others worms to keep the hunter from rebuilding itself. Jared shoots three bursts into the blue hunter but it charges up its beam and the spartan rolls left behind a wall as it shoots hot radioactive energy at him. The entire temperature of the room rises from the blast.
The hunter turns after its comrade is slain and growls at Blanks. The spartan is tempted to turn on his camouflage but instead, he intentionally remains visible. Blanks: "Come and get me, you ugly hunk of metal!" The hunter charges its beam and shoots a stream of hot green energy at him while horizontally sweeping its arm.
Jacob slides toward the hunter as the beams burn the wall behind him. The heavy creature hurries after the soldier and swings its left arm down at him. The spartan rolls left. The Mgalekgolo rotates its body and swings horizontally with its left arm. Jacob flips behind the creature.
The spartan draws his combat knife and slashes the hunter's back with a wide swing. Orange blood splatters as the hunter leans against the wall moaning. Jacob suppresses fire as he shoots the thing in half. Thomas disengages his camo, "Wow, you were so fast I didn't even have time to land that perfect shot from behind."
Blanks: "Don't sweat it, close combat is my thing anyway. I didn't even think to use my shotgun either with the adrenaline pumping."
Akers: "Don't say that too loudly, some ONI spook might be listening into our conversation. The last thing we want is for them to think we forgot something, that will only be more confirmation for a scientist to claim spartan IIs are more effective than us."
Thomas: "Hey, I'd say we do pretty nicely." Thomas points his gun at the dead Covenant. Thomas: "I haven't even kicked into second gear yet."
Blanks: "That's because you didn't do anything, not against them."
Thomas: "Ooooh, so that's how it is?"
Blanks: "And by the way, I have at least five gears so that doesn't really mean that much."
Thomas: "Well, I've got like seven gears."
Blanks: "Then it must not take as much for you to level up."
[Halo Theme- Mjolnir Mix (Music starts)]
Akers: "Cut the useless chatter. Let's go." The Spartans blitz through the halls at ten miles an hour, not moving too quickly incase another Covenant threat looks to surprise them.
Five Unggoy patrol a hallway. Four are minors and one is a major. All of them have plasma pistols save one minor that instead wields a needler. Blanks opens fire with his AR and quickly guns down two grunts. Akers opens fire with his battle rifle and unloads a barrage of bullets into the major's face.
Unggoy major: "Oh no!" Thomas hurls a grenade which splatters the two remaining grunts. Two jackals with blue shields rush into the scene but Akers instinctively extends his rifle and pounds two projectile bursts into the right jackal's abdomen.
Akers fires a round at the remaining jackal but it blocks the shot with its shield. Less than a second later, Blanks sweeps low as he shoots at the creature's legs. The reptile lowers its shield as it blocks Blanks's bullets. Thomas readjusts and clips the jackal in its head.
Three elite minors enter from a door across them which immediately locks. Two of them have plasma rifles but the minor in the middle has a carbine. A minor fires three green lines of radiation at Akers, but the spartan dives left before turning invisible.
Jacob Blanks unloads a payload of bullets into the minor on the right. The elite's shields buckle, and his vision is reduced as bullets explode into his protective armor barrier. The elite responds by tossing a grenade at his opponent. Jacob slides toward the blue armored knight.
A loud explosion occurs behind him, but the other two spartans leap back to avoid being harmed. Without much thought, they jump right back into action and reengage the two elites across them.
Jacob rises to his feet to engage the elite, but the alien slams its right leg into the left side of his pylorus. The spartan's armor crunches before the elite follows up by clubbing the spartan with a right swing. The Sangheili picks up Jacob, but the enhanced prodigy wiggles his right arm free and pounds the elite in its jaw with a downward punch.
The elite hits the deck and Jacob switches to his shotgun and blasts it. Thomas switches opponents and shoots two bullets into the carbine elite. The minor counters by firing a radioactive line at the spartan III's face. Thomas ducks and bounces a frag grenade against the ground which rises and explodes which floors the elite.
Thomas fires two bullets into the injured minor before he can get back up. The remaining minor shoots two plasma bolts at Akers who flips diagonally toward the elite. While in the air, Akers shoots three BR rounds into the Sangheili. The warrior stumbles two inches back as his armor shutters from the vibrations of the blows.
Akers shoots another three BR bursts into the elite's shields, causing them to pop. Jared follows up with another two shots; one to his foe's neck and another in the chest, "Ouuu, uhhh!!"
Jacob glances at Jared, "We sure showed them."
Thomas replies to Jacob, "Looks like that one elite made you sweat a little bit."
Jacob: "Ah, he was an overachiever, but I got him."
Thomas: "Aren't we all." Thomas notices the door is locked.
Akers: "Thomas, see if you can hack through that door, we might be able to catch the enemy off-guard." On the other side of the door, Uron waits with his two majors, Dezarto, and the two Huragoks continue to work.
Uron: "Is it finished yet?"
Dezarto clicks a button, and a second sonic boom is heard but this time a pulse of energy knocks Dezarto several feet back against a wall. Uron falls on his back as do the two Sangheili majors. The engineers float backward, and a strong electromagnetic pulse can be felt by everyone in the room.
Uron rises, "By the forerunners? What happened?!"
Dezarto speaks in a chilling tone, "It has begun..."
Uron looks up at the ceiling, "Ah, of course. Then it is time. Dezarto, we must go."
(Music stops)
Uron looks at one of the Huragoks, "You come with us, I value our engineers and want you to see what comes next in our voyage."
Uron turns and looks at the two majors, "Brothers, I will let the other Huragok remain with you, he will amp your shields and improve your chances of holding any demons back if they manage to make it this far."
Sangheili major 1: "With pleasure my lord."
Sangheili major 2: "It will be our honor, Uron." Uron, Dezarto, and a Huragok exit with the door behind them locking. The other door suddenly opens but no one can be seen.
Sangheili major 1: "Who is it? Xypol, is that you?!!"
Sangheili major 2: "Hmmm, stay sharp." The two elites slowly advance to the center of the room while the Huragok floats low from the ceiling to behind a console to avoid detection. A storm of bullets from Thomas and Akers as they are somewhat revealed from their cloaks.
Both elites are hit several times, and their shields begin to fizzle. The left major rolls right and shoots a barrage of plasma bolts at Thomas. Thomas jumps high and left over the shots and shoots more bullets into the left major. Thomas thinks, "His shields should be buckling now."
The Sangheili fires three plasma balls back at the spartan and Reid sprints right and past Akers before hopping behind a metallic desk for cover. Akers shoots three bursts into the right major, "These elites are resilient. Major shields are slightly stronger than minors, but not this strong!"
The captain hurls a frag grenade at the elite officer and the Sangheili jumps left. The grenade explodes against a desk in the lower right edge of the room, but it forces the Huragok to rise from its hiding place. Thomas comments, "Engineer!"
The left major looks to take a shot at the spartan squad leader but Jacob appears out of nowhere and shoots a cascade of bullets into the elite's energy barrier. The major groans as his vision is hampered by the incoming storm of projectiles, he rolls right before firing his own stream of four plasma bolts.
Jacob slides forward as he unloads more shots into the elite's shields. Thomas rises from cover and shoots three bullets into the Huragok's shields. The right elite notices and shoots a plasma ball at the spartan. The supersoldier dashes left and fires another three bullets into the engineer's shields.
Akers fires a bullet into the right major's plasma rifle, destroying it before he aims up and shoots three BR bursts into the engineer which shatters it to pieces. The enraged elite rushes at the spartan, "Noooooo!!!" Akers fires three BR rounds into the elite but it keeps coming forward.
The spartan captain hops at the elite before thrusting both of his legs into its face with a double flip kick. The elite is dazed, stumbles three feet back, and shakes his head before running after the spartan again. Akers fires another two blasts into the elite's shields before he butts his rifle with his right arm into the Sangheili's face, "Oooooff!"
Akers extends his left hand as he slashes the elite's stomach with a combat knife, breaking its shields. The captain rotates his gun and unloads two volleys of bullets into the warrior's stomach. The Sangheili kneels down and spits blood out of his mouth.
Sangheili major: "The journey, is still not over, not yet!! I am just one part of a larger pilgrimage!"
Akers counters, "Hush!" The spartan III shoots the elite in his nose and violet blood scatters as a result. The left elite major shoots two plasma spheres at Blanks but the UNSC enforcer diagonally rolls right and forward. The spartan finishes his move by firing seven bullets into the elite.
The first five bullets crack the major's shields and the next two drop the large combatant. Jacob responds, "I'm almost out of bullets, I used up around 80 percent of my ammo."
Thomas: "You can always snag a plasma rifle as a secondary weapon; incase things get too sticky."
Jacob picks up a plasma rifle from one of the fallen majors and straps it to the back of his utility belt, "Not a bad idea, I might also take one of these plasma grenades. It could be useful in the future."
Thomas: "To think, we don't even need shields to do all this. Just goes to show, skills can take a team a long way."
Akers: "I'd love to stand around and talk, but we need to see what their leader just did. He couldn't have gotten far, I can tell they were recently working in here." A Covenant team waits in a hallway with white floors, walls, and a white ceiling.
The team consists of five grunts and two elites. One of the grunts is an ultra and all of the Unggoy in this squad have plasma pistols. Both elites are minors with plasma rifles. The door across them suddenly opens and two grunts are immediately shot down. A bullet punctures the left eye of the ultra grunt.
Akers sways his gun as he unloads two bursts into the remaining grunts. The two minors look to sprint into action as Jacob uses his stealth field to unexpectedly toss a plasma grenade onto the left minors armor. The plasma grenades are made so that they can stick to whatever they touch.
The Sangheili screams, "Ahhhhhahah, where did it come from?!" The other elite dives right as his comrade implodes.
Remaining Elite Minor: "No, no, no!!!! You cursed scoundrels!! The elite charges and shoots a barrage of six plasma bolts at Thomas and Blanks. The two spartan dive on the floor leaving them vulnerable. Akers directly shoots the minor three times.
The advanced warrior turns and shoots three plasma balls back at him. The spartan rolls left and fires another three shots into the elite's shields. Blanks hops back to his feet to assist his ally, but the elite turns and fires two plasma bolts at him. Blanks spirals left and Thomas rises to his knee as he shoots two bullets into the elite's stomach.
The Sangheili's shields break and Jacob switches to his shotgun before he unloads a thunderous shockwave of metal into the elite, knocking its body against the wall behind it. Thomas: "A bit overkill, don't you think Jacob?"
Jacob: "Sometimes overkill is good."
Thomas: "I don't have the vocal energy to argue right now." Jared notices two long windows on both ends of the hall which reveal the sunny weather outside.
Akers comments, "Good work team, let's go outside and see what's waiting for us. This may be our last chance to stop their leader!" The spartans exit the complex with their camo on. A large violet swirling wormhole opens up in the planet's orbit and dozens of Covenant ships fly into the portal.
The Covenant fleet consists of 1 Covenant Assault Carrier, 2 Varric Heavy Cruisers, 3 Kewu Battleships, 4 Ket Battlecruisers, 6 Ester Armored Frigates, 6 stealth ships, 8 Zanar Light Cruisers, 12 Ceudar Heavy Corvettes, and 30 Rothen Fireships.
Outside and several steps across the rear end of the complex, a Kez'katu pattern phantom soars about twenty-five feet over the ground. The phantom is a large, maroon-colored Covenant gunship that is known for its speed and durability. The vehicle has four heavy concussion turrets attached to its right, left, and front edges.
A circular latch opens at the lower center of the vehicle, and it emits a blue line of light. This light is a gravity lift which can pull anything under it into the ship. Dezarto steps under the lift and is pulled into the phantom. Uron allows the Huragok to go after him into the lift.
Behind Uron are eight Unggoy guards. Two of these Unggoy are majors with red armor but the other six are minors with orange armor. Two of the grunts have needlers while the others wield plasma pistols. These Covenant are about twenty feet away from the complex and a long stairway that leads to it.
On the exterior of the rear complex are two plasma pistol armed blue shield jackals. Thomas grabs the right jackal guard by his neck and thrusts a combat knife through it. Jacob snaps the neck of the left jackal guard. Jacob shouts in his radio, "Look, it's Uron!! Shoot him down!!"
Thomas pulls his DMR and shoots three bullets at the Sangheili expedition official. Uron's shields briefly buzz and he steps into the lift which pulls him up toward the phantom. The phantom takes aim at the spartans with its three heavy concussion turrets.
Akers: "Oh great, run!" A barrage of nine massive red concussion blasts are fired at the super soldiers. Thomas runs right and leaps further down the steps before he tumbles. Jacob does the same the same in the left direction while Akers runs and leaves down the direct route.
A colossal explosion ensues as chunks of the stairs are blasted off. Thomas and Blanks activate their camouflage to conceal their location. Akers leaps down as two blasts occur behind him and a second blast erupts directly ahead of him. Akers jumps over the explosion and into the air before he fires three BR blasts into Unggoy below him.
As Jared falls and stumbles against the ground, the phantoms takes off and fires six concussion blasts into the captain's position while he's down. Blanks screams as he digs himself off the ground after he fell from the across the steps, "Captain!!"
The Spartan charges and shoots down two grunts in rage. Two Unggoy fire four plasma shots at him but the super soldier rolls right before Thomas creeps behind the grunts and headshots both of them. A final Unggoy with a needler aims shoots at Blanks who fires three of his own bullets into incoming needles which blows them up on impact.
Thomas counters by shooting the grunt twice in his midsection, "Oh, oooooohhh!!" Blanks runs to Aker's charred body. His armor has largely been scorched black from the concussion blasts.
Jacob checks his friend's vitals. "Stay with me sir! Akers, Captain!!" Thomas removes Aker's helmet which reveals a middle-aged man with tan skin, dark brown wavy hair, light blue eyes, a small pointy nose, wide yet thin lips, freckles, and round ears. Blood flows from his mouth and the captain violently coughs.
Jacob shakes his head in disbelief and starts weeping. Jacob: "No, Spartans don't die!! Come on!! GET UP!!" Thomas signals for Jacob to stop.
Jared: "You both have been damn good soldiers, I'm proud of you all. Bronze Team has been something truly special and I was lucky enough to have been your commanding officer. Not only were you both killers, but in spite of everything you had great personality and that is one thing the Spartan IIs will never have over our phase."
Jared coughs, "Bu-but honestly, it has been a blessing to serve at your sides. Make sure I don't pass in vain, stop that elite, whatever it takes. Give em hell Spartans."
A UNSC fleet of 72 warships emerges in the sky directly across the Covenant one. The United Nations fleet includes 1 Punic-class Supercarrier, 2 Autumn Heavy Cruisers, 5 Able Heavy Destroyers, 6 Halcyon Light Cruisers, 7 Gladius Heavy Corvettes, 8 Stalwart Frigates, 8 Point Blank Prowlers, 15 Charon Light Frigates, and 20 Scholte Missile Corvettes.
Thomas looks intensely but says nothing. Two more tears roll from Jacob eyes before he wipes them and gets serious. A UNSC gunship called a pelican, hovers behind the duo. Each pelican has a rotatory ballistic turret as its primary weapon, six missile launchers, and a rear machine gunner that can be revealed when opening the back hatch of the dropship.
Pelicans have a lot of concentrated firepower but are not as heavily armored as phantoms. An ONI officer named Luis Brooks appears in a grey uniform beside a UNSC marine that is holding a machine gun turret. UNSC marines have olive green battle armor and helmets that cover their heads but not their faces.
Unlike Spartans, marines have no genetic enhancements. Officer Brooks: "Nice to meet you both. I'm sorry about your leader."
Thomas: "All due respect sir, but we're really not in the mood for a briefing right now."
Brooks: "Understandable, but you really don't have a choice. As you were told, Uron has an entire fleet that was waiting for this movement, but so do we."
Jacob: "Where are we going?"
Brooks: "To the closest ship nearby. A Halycon Light Cruiser called the Old Faith." Jacob carries Aker's body into the pelican before the vehicle takes off. Thomas tears off Jared's dog tags and puts them in his metal pocket.
The pelican accelerates in the air as several UNSC longsword fighters buzz across the sky. The longswords are very big for fighters. Each is armed with a machine gun and rockets, but these fighters are unshielded.
Covenant air fighters, called banshees buzzes across the sky to engage them. Banshees are purple and green in design with dual light plasma turrets and one fuel rod launcher. These aircraft are unshielded but are numerous and are mainly used for scouting purposes. Three broadswords buzz around and fire a barrage of bullets that shreds apart three banshees.
Another five banshees follow them in pursuit as they return fire, but the UNSC fighters engage in defensive maneuvers. The pelican holding what remains of Bronze Team is trailed by a banshee, but the marine gunner fires a barrage of bullets into the vehicle which dents it and forces the elite pilot to retreat back.
The pelican buzzes into the hangar of the Old Faith. Dozens of marines stand guard in the hangar and multiple sailors watch as the two spartans exit the dropship. Several marines clap in respect of the super soldiers.
Male Marine: "We've got Spartans!"
Female Marine: "Hoorah!!" Meanwhile, the UNSC commanding officer, Admiral Bundi, watches Covenant ships jump into the wormhole. Bundi has dark brown straight hair, brown eyes, light caramel skin, thin eyebrows, medium lips, medium ears, and a slightly wide nose.
Two UNSC officers in white uniforms watch along with a yellow UNSC male AI who has a strong British accent named Peter. Bundi: "They're all jumping into that large wormhole, it doesn't look like the average slipspace opening."
Peter walks across a large dark grey desk in the bridge, "Because it isn't, that wormhole was triggered by the Celestial construct. Apparently, it leads to some new great universe."
Bundi: "Great, it seems we have been too slow to stop them from activating it. How long will it stay open?"
Peter: "Not very long sir, it will close in perhaps the next twenty minutes, but for now, it is still active."
Bundi sighs and pages the other officers who all appear on holograms across his office. Bundi: "We are going to need to jump inside of that hole and go after them. Otherwise, it may take months to find out what they're doing, but then it might be too late. We all know the risk of the Halo rings before."
Female Navy Commander" That's suicide."
Bundi: "Hey I was convincing enough to get you all together to try and stop this guy. Their leader, apparently his name is..."
Peter finishes Bundi's statement, "Uron, he was personally appointed by the High Prophet Mercy."
Bundi: "He's a big deal and has a sizeable fleet at his disposal. We didn't come so far too just waste this force."
Male Navy Captain: "That depends on your definition of wasting."
Male Navy Captain 2: "We went this far and if we don't all go together it could be a waste, we only have about a ten minutes left. Everyone second we wait, Uron's fleet gets further and further from our location. If we keep waiting, we won't catch them even if we use that wormhole."
Bundi: "Well I'm going. And if you all want to risk this supercarrier goes to waste, be my guest."
Elderly Male Navy Captain: "That might happened regardless."
Bundi: "Then at least try and have hope, like what Chief gave us when he cracked that ring before. Whatever, set full course for that opening!!" The supercarrier glides ahead and the other ships reluctantly enter as well. As the last UNSC vessel enters the portal, the wormhole closes.